1970 Dodge Challenger
426 c.i. V8 HEMI with 4-speed manual
The 1970 Hemi Challenger Convertible is an extremely rare and desirable muscle car, with only 9 U.S.-market units produced and 3 more shipped to Canada, for a total of 12 worldwide. These high-performance vehicles were part of Dodge’s response to the Mustang and Camaro, built on the same E-body platform as the Plymouth Barracuda but with a longer wheelbase and unique styling. They featured the legendary 426 cubic-inch Hemi V8 engine, which delivered 425 horsepower through a dual-quad setup. The 1970 model year marked the only year for Challenger R/T convertibles.
The Dodge Challenger is the name of three generations of automobiles produced by the American automobile manufacturer Dodge. However, the first use of the Challenger name by Dodge dates back to 1959 for marketing a “value version” of the full-sized Coronet Silver Challenger.
From model years 1970 to 1974, the first-generation Dodge Challenger pony car was built using the Chrysler E platform in hardtop and convertible body styles sharing significant components with the Plymouth Barracuda.[1]
The second generation, from model years 1978 to 1983, was a rebadged Mitsubishi Galant Lambda / Sapporo,[2] a coupe version of an economical compact car.
The third and current generation is a full-size muscle car that was introduced in early 2008 initially as a rival to the evolved fifth generation Ford Mustang and the fifth generation Chevrolet Camaro.[3]
In November 2021, Stellantis announced that the 2023 model year would be the final model year for both the LD Dodge Charger and LA Dodge Challenger, as the company will focus its plans on electric vehicles rather than fossil fuel-powered vehicles, due to tougher emissions standards required by the Environmental Protection Agency for the 2023 model year.[4] Challenger production ended on December 22, 2023, and the Brampton, Ontario, assembly plant will be re-tooled to assemble an electrified successor.[5]
First Generation (1970 – 1974)
The E-body Challenger was introduced in the autumn of 1969 for the 1970 model year,[6] similar in appearance to but somewhat larger than its less expensive, platform-sharing Plymouth sibling, the Barracuda. It was positioned to compete against the Mercury Cougar and Pontiac Firebird in the upper end of the pony car market,[7] a large and lucrative niche of two-door sport coupes that the Ford Mustang had pioneered in April 1964.[8] Like the Barracuda, it was available in a wide variety of trim and option levels. In spite of its premium price, size, and market placement, Chrysler intended the new Challenger to be the most potent pony car ever,[9] and virtually every engine in its inventory (including the famed 426 Hemi) was made available.[10]
While the vehicle was all new, Dodge had used the Challenger name in 1959 for the Silver Challenger, a limited-production two-door coupe based on the fourth-generation Dodge Coronet.
The 1970 Challenger’s longer wheelbase, larger dimensions, and more luxurious interior than the Mustang or its smaller Chrysler products stablemate, the Barracuda, were prompted by the launch of the upscale 1967 Mercury Cougar, a bigger, better appointed, and more expensive pony car aimed at affluent young American buyers.[11] The 110 in (2,800 mm) wheelbase was 2 in (51 mm) longer than the Barracuda’s, and the Dodge differed in its sheet metal, much as the Cougar differed from the shorter-wheelbase Mustang. Air conditioning and a rear window defogger were optional.[12] With 1971 being the sole exception, the front ends of both cars differed from each other in that the Challenger had four headlights and the Barracuda had only two.
The exterior design was penned by Carl Cameron, who was also responsible for the exterior designs of the 1966 Dodge Charger. Cameron based the 1970 Challenger grille on an older sketch of a stillborn 1966 Charger prototype that was to have a turbine engine. The pony car segment was already declining by the time the Challenger arrived. Sales were excellent initially, with 76,925 units[13] moved in the model’s debut year, but fell dramatically after 1970. Though sales rose for the 1973 model year with over 27,800 cars being sold, Challenger production ceased midway through the 1974 model year. A total of 165,437 first-generation Challengers were sold.